Jewish Art

Exhibiting Jewish Art By Shira Novack
KOC Assistant Editor
Binghamton University   Where else can Jewish art be found in places that we don't expect it?

Jewish Art: A Term or a Topic? By Mel Rivkin
Binghamton University   What society often has a misunderstanding about is that art is formed everyday. So what is Jewish art?

Jewish Art in Poland By Miriam Iken
University of Massachusetts, Amherst   Art can be found in many different forms: a painting, a sculpture, with color, and in black and white.

Questioning Judaism and Art By Sarah Quatrano
Washington University, St. Louis   People often look down on graffiti as a form of art, but in reality it is extreme and progressive art like this that keeps our culture in check.

The Question By Michelle Kaman
KOACH Field Worker   As with art, a significant principle in Judaism is the question.  

With so many of you playing the new Beatles: Rock Band for Wii, we got to thinking... (Read More...)

I have set My bow in the clouds, and it shall serve as a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. (Genesis 9:13) (Read More...)

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Will the Ducks Really Eat My Sins? By Heidi Lumish
Tufts University   Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, against God’s request, yet they were forgiven. With each New Year, we are reminded by this example that our sins can be pardoned.

This Time of Year By Marc Epstein
University of Rochester   How have I changed from this time last year? Why have I changed? Are those changes for the better? And what do I do now?

Doing More With Less By Michelle Rubin
Florida State University   While we may be poorer financially, we are no less rich.

High Holidays and Forgiveness By Shira Novack
KOC Assistant Editor
Binghamton University   With the process of actively asking forgiveness, we are acknowledging publicly that we have committed a sin.

Contradictions By Richard S. Moline
USCJ Director of Youth and Young Adult Services   We enter this new year with lots of questions and very few answers.

Tashlikh Redux: More Than Your Average Sin (Read More...)

KOACH on Campus ezine is adding a new feature. Each month there will be a quote from a Jewish source and we will be accepting submissions of photographs or other visual art forms which interpret the quote. The vision behind this is to be able to incorporate other forms of expression into the ezine and enable people to contribute in other ways. We may be the People of the Book, but we express ourselves with more than words. (Read More...)

Back to School

Transitions By Jonathan Hack
Clark University   After spending four years trying to help build a Jewish community on campus, it became clear that my life truly revolved around educating others about the unique joys of Judaism and a traditional Jewish lifestyle.

There's No Place like School By Matt Tepperman
Indiana University   When making a transition from summer to school, no matter where you live, there will always be some, if not a lot, traveling and schlepping things around, so much so that you truly don't know where you belong anymore.

A Return to Community By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Editor
New York University   In college, no one's forcing you to observe Shabbat, and coming to services becomes a positive elective activity.

In the Month of Elul By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   Whichever way(s) you choose, don't let the month of Elul pass you by. Unpack last year to prepare for the next-and you'll be the richer for it.

Dial your way to forgiveness... (Read More...)

Jewish Culture Corner

A Jew in His Movies By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   Allen has moved on to a new part of his career, where he's desperate to reinvent himself because his old shtick just isn't quite working as much anymore, but is he abandoning his roots?

Jews with the Blues: A Cultural Look at our Place in the World of the Blues By Corey Abramson
Temple University   Bloomfield grew up on Chicago's North Side and chose his bar mitzvah present (a guitar) over his family's catering business.

Limbo By Sam Shuman
Columbia University / JTS   He's not a prophet (as far as I am aware), a heretic or a Jewish philosopher. He's simply a storyteller.

American Jewish Musicians and the Jewish Tradition By Simeon Cohen
List College   Thus, just as the ancient Temple priests and the hazzanim of the Gaonic period used music to connect with God in a spiritual sense, so does Mike Gordon of Phish.

TV Jews   In an era of reality TV which feels anything but real, a little dose of relevance is more than welcome.

Sing Along with the Bible (Read More...)

Heroism

What Makes a Hero? By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   There are many definitions of the word "hero," and it's impossible to pinpoint any one characteristic to qualify someone as a hero. Selflessness and courage are high at the list of heroic traits and every person will give different qualifications that make up a hero for them.

Being a Hero, Being Jewish, Being Good By Joel Chorny
George Washington University School of Law   Like Dershowitz, "I have never quite understood why people who firmly believe they are doing God's will are regarded as 'good' even 'heroic.'

Heroes at Home By Julia Auster
Skidmore College   Don't get me wrong, I am a huge Superman fan and I love Christian Bale, but heroes don't always wear capes. They just do a little good every day that makes a big difference overall.

Heroism Through Tzedakah By Michelle Kaman
KOACH Field Worker   To be a hero, to me, means to positively have an effect on someone's life.

Making Mischief (Read More...)

Homosexuality

Lessons from Abraham: Creating Welcoming Communities By David Schwartz
Washington University in St Louis   Abraham is a role model for us for many reasons, but his best known trait is being welcoming.

Change: It Will Take Time By Paige LaMarche
Baltimore Hebrew University   As a Conservative Jew, born and bred, I have my opinions, and mine include the absolute inclusiveness of homosexuals in our movement.

A Common Bond By Jen Kracoff
Syracuse University   If people are happy, they're happy, right? If they are in love, who are we to tell them it's not legitimate?

Judaism and Homosexuality: A Changing Conversation By Tani Berkowitz
George Washington University   Both in a narrowly Jewish sense and a broader American sense, homosexuality has become increasingly "normalized" to heterosexual audiences.

Counting - and Changing - Our Blessings By Richard S. Moline
KOACH Director   For those of us who accept Torah as authoritative, but also understand that it continues to be a living, evolving document that may speak differently to every generation (as God spoke differently to different generations in the Torah), simple answers don't come easily.

Biblical Transportation (Read More...)

Social Justice

Jewish Values Reexamined By Matt Creighton
Boston University   The ethical code of the Jewish people transcends time and geography.

Ha Lachma Anya By Sarah Block
Bucknell University   Because we were once slaves, we must help others to free themselves from bondage.

Justice and the Jewish People By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   When Israelis were the victims, no one seemed to be watching. Suddenly, all eyes were on Israel once it started to defend itself.

Ethical Dilemmas By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   Was it wrong for me to avoid him? Was it unethical? Could it have been wrong, but not unethical?

Bright Spark (Read More...)

Jewish Music

Jewish Songs and Non-Jewish Jewish Songs By Jacob Kieval
Washington University in St. Louis   In our grandparents' generation, American Jewish kids had limited access to Jewish culture through music; most of it was about going back to Israel, or Shlomo Carlebach-like tunes for popular prayers in the siddur.

Unifying Power By Shoshi Rosenbaum
JTS / Barnard   Harmonies experienced in Jewish music are only possible due to Jewish diversity.

Immersion in Jewish Music By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   It was great to be able to get interested in and excited about something that both captures part of my religious heritage and enables me to appreciate such terrific music.

Singing Your Way Through Passover By Rabbi Shalom Kantor
KOACH-Hillel Rabbi, Binghamton University   Today, music is arguably the most influential and important part of most Jewish ritual, because it allows for people to connect, whether or not they understand the texts, or even agree with them. It is the music that speaks to their souls and hearts.

The History of Horseradish (Read More...)

Minority Groups

Minority Within A Minority By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   It's true that it's difficult to find a practicing Conservative Jew who upholds each and every one of the laws outlined by Conservative Judaism, and it's a certainly a wonder when a whole number of those who uphold most of them gather together in one place.

Shifting Paradigms By Jennifer Gorden
Northeastern University   I always knew that Jewish people were a minority, but because Jewish people had been such a huge part of my life, it never really hit me until college.

Jewish Food

And Who Doesn't Love Food...? By Jillian Zarem
Syracuse University   It is apparent that food plays an integral part in religions and cultures around the world, and that is no different with my family.

Sweet Cookies, Sweet Memories By Shaina Akrish
University of Florida   ...in Jewish circles, mandel bread reigns supreme.

Food Brings Us Together By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   It's hard to pinpoint or pick out any one specific dish or holiday time that truly captures the spirit of Jewish food.

The Smell of Friday Afternoon By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   It's not a competition. It's about liminality, about hanging in the balance, about your heart being big enough to love more than one.

Green Eggs and Matzoh Ball Soup (Read More...)

Sustainable Development

Recycling for a Greater Good By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   On TV, NBC takes an entire week to change their logo to a shade of green and inserts unsubtle references to carpooling or living better at every opportunity. The number of documentaries pushing for green living has also increased, with Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, Leonardo DiCaprio's The 11th Hour, Who Killed the Electric Car and others. There's a uniform message being put forward in all these films, stressing the real difference one single person can truly make.

International Development By Nehama Rogozen
University of Maryland   The work we did was difficult and could be extremely mind-numbing. I had never imagined that I would spend entire days of my summer simply kneeling, pushing sand into a bucket, sifting it through a strainer and doing it over and over and over again, until my back ached and my muscles were sore. Sometimes, I wondered why I hadn't stayed in America for the summer, where I could have watched TV and slept away half of my days.

Going Green—A Phenomenon for Our People By Juliana Ross
Simmons College   I believe on an individual level we can make changes in our everyday lives to heal mother Earth. We must remember that Earth is the place where we continue to survive and thrive; it is not a renewable resource. While it is likely the Earth will persist despite the daily damage, the human race cannot survive as global warming continues, the oceans rise with the melting ice caps, and desertification spreads as the imbalance in temperature persists.

Israel Going Green By Rabbi Elyse Winick / Nomi Freedman
KOACH Associate Director / Shlihah to the Conservative Movement   Learn about a kibbutz that's going off the grid...a Hanukkah gift from your KOACH staff. Let there be light!

Putting your talents to the best possible use. (Read More...)

Politics

Encounters with Politics By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   Jews in politics are an interesting phenomenon, because it suddenly becomes a big issue when they opt to run for high office.

Why Do Jews Vote? By Rebecca Gillette
Harvard University   The idea that we should follow the laws of the land in which we live is crucial to our ability to live a Jewish life in a secular world.

Jews, Rhetoric, and Elections By Avi Smolen
Rutgers University   We need to get past the absolutist rhetoric of ?pro? or ?anti,? black or white, and talk about real issues facing Israel.

Jewish Culinary Predilections (Read More...)

Jewish Education

Jewish Community By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   It?s not that learning Torah or studying laws didn?t interest me; it?s rather that my enthusiastic engagement often existed elsewhere.

Being Jewish By Eve Rickles-Young
Binghamton University   The more you know, the more you understand and hopefully the less willing you are to hate.

Confidence By Yael Werber
Boston University   How did I go from being someone who was completely ignored to being someone who loves and craves being in front of everyone?

Soulfood By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   Naomi and I do not obsess about the things we can?t figure out. We don?t clock how much time we spend on asking about each other?s kids vs. how many pages of text we cover. When we finish a book, we celebrate.

Putting It In Your Heart (Read More...)

Jewish Art

Am I a Jewish Artist? By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University   Wherever you look, it's startlingly easy to find Jewish characters and Jewish themes in movies and on TV.

The Art of Sound By Lara Torgovnik
New York University   The magnificence of Jewish music does not remain solely within the confines of a sanctuary, and I have personally had the honor of experiencing it in many ways throughout my time at NYU

I'll Never be an Artist By Jeffrey Jablansky
New York University   Before the moment that almost launched me headfirst into the world of art appreciation, I had never imagined myself connecting with my "inner artist" on any intellectual level.

A Letter From Nomi By Naomi Freedman
Shlihah to the Conservative Movement   KOACH welcomes Naomi Freedman, the new shlihah to the Conservative Movement. Nomi is available for consultation on aliyah, study in Israel and Israel travel. She's also an excellent resource for campus programs (either to offer suggestions or come for a visit). Click here for a full bio.

If computers were Jewish... (Read More...)

Back to School

A New and Different Year By Alisha Deluty
KOC Editor
JTS/ Columbia University   I cannot believe that I see the desert from campus and can actually be standing in the middle of the desert after a twenty to thirty minute drive.

(Not Exactly) Back to School By Adam Schwartz
University of Tennessee   My back to school experience is very different than what it would be like if I was going to school in the states, but it is an experience that is sure to make me grow.

My heart always will be in the east, though I live in the west... By Jill Wolfson
Boston University   Being back in America, things still seem different, that before seemed so normal.

Back to School By Richard S. Moline
KOACH Director   As summer wanes and our minds reluctantly drift back to school and work, we are again confronted with that cyclical reality that manages to invade our personal space this time of year. Before we know it, the days will get shorter, we'll be spending more time with our books than our Frisbees and summer will become yet another memory.

"Oh, The Places You'll Go!"

You're off to Great Places! You're off and away! By Alisha Deluty
KOC Editor
JTS/ Columbia University   As I prepare to spend next semester at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, I am anxious and excited as I embark on this journey that will no doubt be very different from my life in New York City at Columbia and the Jewish Theological Seminary. I am looking forward to not only exploring the Be'er Sheva area and its surroundings, but also to speaking Hebrew with my Israeli suitemates as well as Arabic with the local Bedouin people.

Thoughts From My Balcony By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   The temperature is high, the water level in the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) is low, there is saber-rattling all around. And yet, there's no where I'd rather be at this moment than watching the sun rise over Jerusalem.

Jezreel Valley—Avocados and the Shmitah By Sam Kessler Gilbride
New York University
Originally Posted Tishrei 5768   This is it, I say to myself, quietly and under my breath. This is what the Torah is talking about. Here, in practice, is the true essence of environmentalism—the practice that gets past all the hype, past all the unsigned treaties and international scandals, past all the lobbying and lies, past all the television specials and Hollywood movies and doomsday novels. These two men, I thought, are doing what Jewish men have done in the land of Israel for three thousand years.

Israeli Army—Our Counterparts in the IDF By Alisha Deluty / Ari Fellman
JTS / Columbia University
Originally Posted Heshvan 5768   KOC KOC Editor Alisha Deluty explores a day in the life of IDF officer Ari Fellman.

Akko—Just the Beginning By Eric Goldberg
New York University
Originally Posted Nisan 5768   The paint is dry. The furniture is in place. Four bomb shelters in Akko, Israel, have been transformed from small, dark spaces into warm, inviting community areas. And a group of 20 NYU students and a community thousands of miles away have been connected and inspired by each other.

3 guys and an Israeli... (Read More...)

Travel Time

Wherever You Go By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   In honor of summer vacation, we?re featuring top travel articles from this year?s CULTURE CORNER series.

A Wandering Jew By Sherri Vishner
KOACH Associate
University of Florida, Gainsville   By the time this article is posted, I will be in the midst of not having a ?home? for a month. After two years in Gainesville, Florida working as the KOACH Associate at The University of Florida, I will be moving to Baltimore in August. In between I?ll be spending a month traveling to see friends and family I?ve not seen in a while.

Bee Season (Read More...)

Marriage

Free to Be ... You & Me By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   At shul a few weeks ago, our congregation celebrated a baby naming and a Bat Mitzvah. In both cases, my rabbi blessed the girls with long lives that lead them to the huppah. But why not pray for long lives that lead to happiness? Why is marriage still considered to be the ultimate marker of a successful and meaningful Jewish life?

A KOACH Love Story By Shiri Bernstein
San Diego State University   Now, I could tell you how my fiancee and I met at a KOACH program, went on Taglit Birthright Israel with KOACH, are getting married by KOACH's very own Rabbi Elyse Winick and lived happily ever after, but what fun would that be? So, instead I'd like to tell you a different kind of love story. A story that took a lot of KOACH, or rather, strength.

The Jewish Wedding By Rabbi Shalom Kantor
KOACH/Hillel Rabbi
Binghamton University   Jewish weddings are probably the most exciting and special events in all of our traditions. The dawning wedding day can be the happiest and holiest day of one's life.

The perils of marrying a non-Jew (Read More...)

Zionism in America

Yom Huledet Sameah! By Alisha Deluty
KOC Assistant Editor
JTS / Columbia University   Every year for as long as I can remember, I have attended the Israel Day Parade on Fifth Avenue in New York City. Whether it was a rainy or sunny day, I excitedly stood across from Central Park and waved to friends, family and strangers from schools, synagogues, camps and other organizations as they marched down the street.

Tangible Links By Yael Langer
Smith College   When my best friend from college came to visit for spring break, our first stop was Carmel, the local Middle Eastern food store. We ignored the lure of a sunny day in Central Park or a walk along Broadway in favor of a quick cultural trip I had been excited about for a few weeks.

Beyond the Pita, Beyond the Hummus By Bara Levitt
JTS / Columbia University   I am a Zionist! I am also, among other things, a woman, an American, a member of the Jewish people and a student. My identity and obligations are complicated, layered and often interconnected.

Seeing Israel through Someone Else's Eyes By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   It's remarkable how many things imprint themselves upon your soul forever. To this day, my heart aches a little when I think about whether or not I'm a Zionist. If I'm living here, can I really earn that appellation?

Meat Shortage...a morality tale for anyone who's ever waited in line for falafel in Tel Aviv. (Read More...)

Kashrut

How do we explain it? By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri   When we try to explain those rules to non-Jews, we come off sounding more than slightly archaic (?God only wants us to eat animals that chew their cud and have cloven hooves.? ?God doesn't want us to boil a kid in its mother's milk.? ?It's not humane to eat an animal with properly draining its blood.?) So how do modern-day Jews justify the laws that separate Treif from Kosher?

Why do we do it? By Nichole Hellman
University of Arizona   Double-decker bacon cheeseburgers, pepperoni pizzas with extra cheese, sausage patty egg McMuffins ? Aside from the incredible fat content of these greasy delights, why do we deprive ourselves of such manmade luxuries?

Keeping Kosher By Mark Greenberg
KOACH Field Worker   I told my non-Jewish friends we were going on a scavenger hunt and I was going to show them that keeping Kosher wasn't that hard. We started out at the traditionally very small section in the ?ethnic? food aisle. We made up rules and I showed them what to look for.

Making it Kosher (Read More...)

Jewish Food

From Kn?el to the Hillel Sandwich By Alisha Deluty
KOC Assistant Editor
JTS / Columbia University   So much of Jewish culture and practices revolve around different types of food. Each holiday has a set of special dietary customs, whether it is to eat hallah on Shabbat, apples and honey on Rosh Hashanah, or hamantashen on Purim, or not to eat anything at all on Yom Kippur and eat only unleavened foods on Passover.

Mommy's Boy Learns to Cook By Joel Chorny
George Washington University   This article is not about how my mother and grandmother make the best food in the world, but rather this article is about a sad realization we all have to make at some point and that I have come to accept after just one semester of living away from my parents: Our mothers and grandmothers are not always going to be around to make our favorite dishes for us.

Back to My Roots By Rachel Rubin
University of Missouri-Columbia   Where I come from, the hot dog is Big. Bigger than the Italian beef sandwich and the deep-dish pizza combined. Made just right with mustard, onion and relish and just a dash of celery salt. No one would dare defy tradition by using ketchup.

Jewish Food By Rabbi Ed Romm
Director of Education and Campus Programs, Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism in Israel   There is an expression which says "you are what you eat". When it comes to the Jewish people, the expression is right on target.

Culinary Cunning (Read More...)

Shabbat Shalom!

What do you like about Shabbat? By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   I think that variety of responses is actually what I like most about Shabbat. I like that it can provide different people with different types of comfort, whether it's the community or the traditions. I like that Shabbat can be meaningful to different people in different ways.

New Community By Adam Schwartz
University of Tennessee   Every Friday, as the afternoon turned into evening, my father would take my siblings and me to the window, and we would watch the sunset. This was our special Shabbat time and I treasured it. It took several years for me to realize that sunsets happened on nights other than Shabbat Eve.

New Traditions By Stephenie Carlson
University of Missouri-Columbia   I wasn't raised in a Jewish household. I don't have childhood memories of candles being lit on Friday night, of kiddush being chanted over wine and I had my first bite of challah a little over a year ago. Only in March of 2007 did Shabbat begin to mean something to me and play a role in my life.

Shabbat in Israel - For Everyone? By Itamar Kremer
Shaliah to the Conservative Movement   Chulent, shul, kiddush?
Try trips, humus and vodka red bull...

Shlepping on Shabbos.... (Read More...)

Going Green

Why Us? By Alisha Deluty
KOC Assistant Editor
JTS / Columbia University   Having lived in New York City for my entire life, I have always been somewhat immune to the masses of garbage and pollution that exist. Just looking outside my window here on the Upper West Side in Manhattan, I see the large black garbage bags that line the streets. This, as well as the polluted air, which I have become used to breathing, harms the environment. But why should we as Jewish college students, be so concerned with the protection of the earth?

What Can We Do? By Adam Shery
Middlesex County College   The Jewish concept of Tikkun Olam, or repairing the world, is at the forefront of topics discussed among Jews today. While there are many prominent ethical problems in need of "repairing," I feel that the most literal meaning of Tikkun Olam is the healing, or more accurately, the saving of humanity itself, by way of the environment.

Who Can Help Me?   COEJL, Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life offers support and resources.

Our End of the Deal By Richard S. Moline
KOACH Director   The heavens belong to Adonai; the earth God has entrusted to human beings, says Psalm 115. What role, then, do we play in caring for the earth? If environmental protection is a universal issue, what makes it particularly Jewish? KOACH Director Rich Moline examines the intersection between God and humanity and the role it plays in protecting our planet.

Jewish Dictionary (Read More...)

Gender in Judaism

Here and Now By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   During the course of my childhood, my synagogue had a female rabbi, in addition to female presidents, female teachers and female torah readers. It all seemed so common. It didn't even occur to me that women were previously restricted from such roles.

We've Come So Far By Emily Wasserman
Washington University   When I was a little girl, I was exposed to a movie that would eventually become one of my favorite films of all-time. As I watched "Fiddler on the Roof," it was as if I was seeing my ancestors live, congregate and eventually persevere through the noxious pogroms. Also, Tevye's rendition of "Tradition" proved simultaneously hilarious and unforgettable.

We've Got So Far to Go By Abby Seeskin
Macalester College   It's hard from here to determine what exactly we, as college students, can do to make Conservative Judaism a more gender equal religion. We can't rewrite the Torah or the rabbinic teachings, nor can we magically produce female scholars from the past who never existed. In fact, it's pretty hard for me to conceive ways of undoing centuries of gender inequality. But we can take steps, albeit baby steps, in the progressive direction.

When a Kippah is not just a Kippah By Sherri Vishner
KOACH Associate   When someone is trying to point me out in a crowd, or giving someone else a description of me, one of the first things they say is, "she's the one in the kippah".

How to figure out who is sitting next to you on that transatlantic flight.... (Read More...)

Jewish Jams

Behind the Music By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   I can?t hear Salaam without thinking of USY. Shir Al Ahava immediately conjures up memories of camp. Havdalah brings me to tears, as it clearly reminds me of my trip to Israel and Hallel always makes me reminisce of my days at Schechter. Even more modern/non-prayer music brings me back to a different time and place.

Virtual Jewish Music By Eva Heinstein
Hebrew University   For those who can't take a long walk through the streets of Jerusalem, a short walk to the nearest computer will suffice. Two exciting projects are being developed online, here in Jerusalem, that aim to provide resources for those interested in exploring the diverse genres and styles of Jewish music.

Confessions of a Song Leader By Shira Berkowitz
University of Missouri-Columbia   I remember some of my first Shabbatot in preschool singing about things we like about Shabbat, then in later years standing with my arms around friends at summer camp or lying on the floor singing at the top of our lungs, which progressed into jumping around the room in circles of friends singing nigunim (wordless melodies) at USY conventions, followed by hours of sitting at the Shabbat table in my college years singing every song we can think of.

Music in Jewish Tradition By Rabbi Shalom Kantor
KOACH/Hillel Rabbi
Binghamton University   I love Jewish music! I don?t care if it is Hassidic niggunim or Klezmer, Debbie Friedman, traditional Sephardic music, or some of the newer genres that you might find being produced by J-Dub records?Jewish music is something that just speaks to my soul.

Would-Be Jewish Country Songs! (Read More...)

Jewish Greeks

Going Greek on Campus By Alisha Deluty
KOC Assistant Editor
JTS / Columbia University   Cultural fraternities and sororities developed due to discrimination that existed in Greek life. Existing fraternities and sororities prohibited certain cultures and races from joining. A few multicultural fraternities and sororities were established to foster diversity.

Jewish Fraternity By Joshua Borenstein
New York University   Is a membership of all Jews enough to qualify us as a "Jewish" fraternity? None of us believed it was. We agreed that if we did not work hard to incorporate Jewish values into the identity of our chapter, then we would be no different from any other fraternity on campus.

Secular Fraternity By Steve Silver
Northwestern University   Some might call it blasphemy, but yes, I?m a Jew in a non-Jewish frat at Northwestern University ? Beta Theta Pi to be exact. And the question I always hear the most is, "Why?"

Greek Life and Jewish Life...Having Both By Michelle Samuels
KOACH Midwest Field Worker   Jewish Greek Seder was held at one of the Jewish fraternities and we had over 150 Jewish Greeks in attendance from both Jewish and Non-Jewish Greek Houses. By my senior year, the seder had grown to over 250 students.?

The Playoffs (Read More...)

Jewish Ethics

Aligning Your Moral Compass By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   I find religion fascinating. I always have. It offers people everything from community and a sense of belonging to tradition and a sense of history. But the fact that religion also provides the basic foundation for ethical discussion is icing on the cake.

Avocados and the Shmitah By Sam Kessler Gilbride
New York University   This is it, I say to myself, quietly and under my breath. This is what the Torah is talking about. Here, in practice, is the true essence of environmentalism—the practice that gets past all the hype, past all the unsigned treaties and international scandals, past all the lobbying and lies, past all the television specials and Hollywood movies and doomsday novels. These two men, I thought, are doing what Jewish men have done in the land of Israel for three thousand years.

Righteous Gentiles By Rachel Weisel
University of Pennsylvania   Of all the facts, figures and photographs in the museum, their stories left the biggest impression on me. Maybe this was because hearing about the Righteous Gentiles made look me look inside myself and ask some painfully difficult questions: What would I do in their situation? Would I willingly put my own life and the lives of my family members in jeopardy to save somebody else?

On the Eve of a New Year... By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Associate Director   The holidays come early this year. I know that?s not true, since Rosh HaShanah is always at the beginning of Tishrei, but I look outside and the trees are still green and it feels early. I stop for breath and look into my soul and I think, no, not yet, too soon.

Joke Alphabet Soup

Back to School

New Year, Fresh Start By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia   Once you get past the end of high school, where all anyone cares about is the name of the college you've chosen, you start to think about what the next few years are actually going to look like. You start to wonder about your academic and personal life and how they will differ from what you've experienced thus far.

Finding Your Place on Campus By David Schwartz
Washington University   When you walk onto campus to begin the school year, you are walking into a very fluid social scene (more solid if you are returning, but still not "set in stone"). You may have to force yourself to not be shy, but the reward is worth it.

Jewish Ties, Easy Transition By Matt Kleiman
University of Wisconsin- Madison   No need to state the obvious, but here it goes: the transition to college is a huge change. How will I like my roommate? Will classes be hard? How am I going to make all new friends? And, of course, the question that might not be lurking in your head, but should be: "How will I find my way Jewishly on campus?"

Welcome Alisha Deluty! KOC's New Assistant Editor By Alisha Deluty
KOC Assistant Editor
JTS / Columbia University  

My "To Do" List By Richard S. Moline
KOACH Director   This is the time of year many of us face with some trepidation. Those long summer days are getting shorter. The summer routine (or lack thereof) gives way to a different kind of structure. A certain fear of the unknown seems to slowly creep upon us.

Joke Meeting the Parents

Jewish in America

Is "American-Zionist" a contradictory identity? By Josh Tobias
KOC Assistant Editor
Brown University

When I was in elementary school, the question that was all the rage on the playgrounds of the Solomon Schechter Day School was which side we would fight for in a hypothetical Israeli-American war.

Seinfeld, JDate and Chinese food: New definitions of American Judaism By Lia Lehrer
Northwestern University

As an American Jew, I participate in many ancient rituals relating to the holidays. We have sedarim on Passover, we eat latkes on Hanukkah and, most importantly, we eat Chinese food on Christmas.

Jewish Americans or American Jews? By Alana Chill
Cornell University

Cornell University has two Hillel logos, used for different types of events. One logo is said to give off the impression that "we are students at Cornell University who are Jewish," while the other is said to promote the image that "we are Jews who are a part of the Cornell University community."

Jewish in America By Rabbi Ed Romm
Director, Center On Campus
Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism, Jerusalem

When I was asked to write on being "Jewish In America," I was at first surprised. I have been living in Israel for close to 30 years. I direct a program for "overseas" students who study in Israel. Also, I have not spent more than two weeks at a time in America since making aliyah.

Joke Red, White and Blue Star of David: American-Jewish Humor

Jewish Pluralism

"They're Jewish Too" By Alyssa Appelman
KOC Editor
University of Missouri, Columbia

At least for me, Judaism has always had a sort of a narrow connotation. It's not that I don't know a lot of Jewish people; I just don't really feel that I've been exposed to that much diversity within the community.

Accepting Multiple Identities By Avi Smolen
KOACH Intern
Rutgers University

While it's great to know who you are and to hold strong beliefs, the question arises as to how you deal with people whose opinions and beliefs differ from yours. This is where pluralism comes in.

Finding Judaism Abroad By Tanya Weitkamp
Missouri State University

Yeah, it's been said a thousand times before. I'm a Jew, you are a Jew; we are all Jews. But I didn't really get it until I started traveling abroad.

Judaism is Made for Pluralism By Mark Greenberg
KOACH Field Worker
Washington D.C.

There is a midrash that I love. The story goes that in the World to Come, Rabbi Akiva is teaching in his House of Study. God places Moses in the back row and he doesn't recognize anything Rabbi Akiva is teaching.

Sivan D'var Torah By Rabbi Aaron Alexander
Assistant Dean
Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies
American Jewish University

Sefer Vayikra mapped out for us a complicated and detailed blueprint for encountering God, praising God, and apologizing to God -- the sacrificial system. The first verse of Bamidbar counters by claiming that experiencing God can actually be quite simple. One need not wear extravagant priestly garments; one need only a wilderness and a Tent of Meeting.

Joke Receiving the Ten Commandments

"Jews in Showbiz"

Acting, Czechoslovakia, and the Power of Living with Kavvanah
By Josh Tobias
Brown University
KOC Assistant Editor

Despite the strength of their acting skills, or the quality of the makeup job, the actor can never be the character that they are playing. An actor is always expressing a lie, conveying information that is not true.

Put on Your Yarmulke...
By Sarah Goldfarb
Penn State

Although it may not be the most politically correct song, no one can resist singing along to Adam Sandler's "Hanukkah Song." Ever wondered whether Sandler?s song is factually correct? I dug up the truth on the Jewish roots of the stars mentioned in his festive song.

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Jews in the Spotlight
By Becky Adelberg
KOACH Midwest Field Worker

There is an excitement in our culture with being connected to a celebrity, either through relatives, having interacted with someone famous (even if he/she was just an extra on a PBS special) or the rare chance of a celebrity spotting.

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Iyyar D'var Torah
By Rabbi Charles Savenor
Associate Dean, JTS Rabbinical School

Parashat Emor and the need to open our hearts and doors to those left outside.

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Campus Update
By Justine Slovin
KOACH Intern
University of Arizona

Check out this update from our intern at the University of Arizona!

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Joke

A Jewish dog in shul?

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"Social Responsibility"

"Le Silence est l'Ignorance"
By Alyssa Appelman
University of Missouri ? Columbia
KOC Editor

My first experience with student activism in Paris was a conference on the situation in Darfur, which was co-sponsored by the UEJF, the Union des Etudiants Juifs de France. Apparently, my years of French classes in the States have still left me with much to learn, as comprehension of the language spoken in an academic setting at a fairly rapid speed is still beyond me.

Development, Thailand and Tikkun Olam
By Max Chaiken
Brown University

He works primarily as an AIDS educator. He goes to local communities and teaches children in schools what AIDS is and how they can prevent it. When I asked him why his wife doesn't value that work, he either didn't know or didn't understand what I was asking him. Our conversations were always brief and punctuated by laughter, smiles and the occasional cigarette. Yet somehow, even without a common language or a common experience we shared a connection.

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Eco-kashrut? A New Way of Eating Jewishly
By Melissa Crawley
University of Missouri

Keeping eco-kosher has been a way for me to increase the sacred connection between my food purchases and my eating habits. Every time I go to the grocery store, I think not just of whether my food choices fall within the parameters of traditional kashrut, but also in term of how my food choices connect me to my community.

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Abraham Joshua Heschel: Changing the World One Word at a Time
By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Assistant Director

My fascination with Heschel's life and work began on the very first Shabbat of my college experience. After lunch, I took a full stack of reading outside, to try to make some headway in the unbelievable amount of work I had. Assaying the books, I did what any student in their right mind would have done ? picked the shortest one. This way, I rationalized, I'd feel a sense of accomplishment and motivation to plow through the rest of the stack.

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Nisan D'var Torah
By Rabbi Amy Eilberg
Yedidya Center for Spiritual Direction

The story of Yetzi'at Mitzrayim (the exodus from Egypt) must provide the answer for how we as a people are to respond to what ails our world, for it is our central story as a people, defining our collective identity, our values and our commitments. The message of this narrative could not be more clear: we are a people which knows the soul of the stranger, the marginalized and the persecuted. We must instinctively work for justice for the afflicted ? be they individuals, communities, nations, or the earth herself.

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Campus Update
By Ashley Isenberg
KOACH Intern
York University

So three rabbis walk into a bar....ouch! ...Ha ha, no, this isn't the beginning of a joke, "3 Rabbis Walk into a Bar" is the name of a city-wide Jewish interdenominational dialogue series supported by Hillel, KOACH, Kesher, and Yavneh-Olami. Just as its title suggests, students gathered at a bar with Hillel's Reform and Orthodox rabbis and our special guest Conservative Rabbi David Eligberg from Beit Rayim Synagogue.

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Passover Jokes

These jokes should help the matzah go down more easily!

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"Jews and Booze"

It's interesting that I'm writing an article about "Jews and Booze" from the Czech Republic, a country so enamored with alcohol that it once had a political party exclusively devoted to beer. You cannot walk more than twenty feet here without encountering some place selling alcohol.

Thoughts from the Director
By Richard S. Moline
KOACH Director

I'd simply like to share some random thoughts with you this month. Since I don't have a blog, this is my outlet ? at least for this issue of KOACH-ON-CAMPUS. I stress that these are my personal observations and do not necessarily represent the views of KOACH or USCJ.

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Adar D'var Torah
By Rabbi Paul Drazen
Director of Congregational Services
United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism

Why does the Torah use both "remember" and "not forget?" Is not remembering the same as not forgetting? To complicate matters a bit, in addition to remembering and not forgetting, we are also told to "blot out the memory."

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The Golden Compass
By Hannah Ehrlich
KOC Book Review

Part of what makes young adult novels so special is that children have more active imaginations and, as a result, writers are free to take many more liberties and chances than they can with adult novels.

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Campus Update
By Emilie Botbol
KOACH Intern

University of Illinois KOACH update!

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Joke

So what did I miss?

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"Jewish Pride"

The Roles We Play
By Alyssa Appelman
University of Missouri ? Columbia
KOC Editor

It would seem that during those times when I was surrounded by Jews, it would have been pretty easy to feel comfortable with my own identity. And it would seem that during those times when I was in the minority, I would have been less secure.

Sources of Jewish Pride
By Mindy Lipson
Brandeis University

Though it is not the role of the public school to impart any sort of religious pride into students, I believe that by displaying holiday objects partial to one religion, a school can affect the religious feelings of a student who is of a minority faith.

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At Home in Israel
By Rabbi Ed Romm
Director, Center on Campus Program in Israel

For me Jewish pride is Israeli through and through. I do not take Israel for granted. After 2000 years of not having our own country, I am proud to carry an Israeli passport.

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Shevat D'var Torah
By Rabbi Paul Resnick
Camp Ramah in the Berkshires

Yet another new year!

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Campus Update
By Samantha Dresser
KOACH Intern

Michigan State University KOACH update!

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Joke

Isn't it ironic?

"Sacrifice"

Hanukkah and Optimistic Sacrifice
By Josh Tobias
Brown University
KOC Assistant Editor

Hanukkah seems like the cynic’s answer to the gooey sentimentality of the Christmas season. Sure we will embrace the universal humanity of mankind, it says, once you stop trying to destroy us and let us practice our religion.

Happy Medium
By Gregory Adelberg
University of Kansas

Finding that middle ground, or as I like to refer to it as that "happy medium," is the key to life. It not only allows one to lead a successful life, but also a truthful one filled with health, love, openness and the ability to experience and grow.

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Drawing Near
By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Assistant Director

"Sacrifice...the word almost makes us shudder. Ancient, faceless functionaries offering up something helpless to a God who does not need it and cannot want it..."

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Campus Updates
By Ariella Zbar and Max Horovitz
KOACH Interns

Check in with KOACH at McGill University in Montreal and the University of Florida in Gainesville

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Joke

What did you get for Hanukkah?

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"Assimilation"

How Do You Decide?
By Alyssa Appelman
University of Missouri – Columbia
KOC Editor

We?ve heard the term thrown around for years, but for some reason it?s still sort of a taboo topic among Jews and especially, in my opinion, among younger Jews. And I think that?s because of fear.

The Upside of Assimilation
By Mark Greenberg
KOACH Field Worker
Washington, DC

Judaism and assimilation have a very long, intertwined history. While the Torah and Talmud have stories of Israelites who became assimilated and then came back to their roots, I want to look at what I would loosely call the upside of assimilation.

Should the Conservative Movement Assimilate Secular Values?
By Yoni Yares
Rutgers University

The values of the places where Jews have lived have found their way into the Conservative Movement and into other parts of Judaism. I can think of two major examples: women?s rights and the rights of homosexuals.

Campus Updates from Rutgers and UCLA
By Avi Smolen and Julie Pinchak
KOACH Interns

KOACH Poker Night at Rutgers and KOACH Big Sibs mentorship program at UCLA...

Joke

Be careful what you wish for - marrying a nice Jewish girl...

"The Future of the
Conservative Movement"

Where do we go from here?
By Alyssa Appelman, University of Missouri – Columbia
KOC Editor

We are part of a movement that constantly struggles to maintain a unified identify, while at the same time trying to appeal to as large a constituency as possible. To do so, it seems that we often forgo organized structure in order to embrace organized debate.

Tradition and Change
By Avi Eisen
Montclair State University

We are not like Orthodoxy trying to conserve the past while society is changing, and we are not like Reform discarding tradition in favor of assimilation and acceptance in society. We are a Halakhic movement, and Halakhah is the basis of all our decisions.

Identity Crisis
By Elise Loterman
York University

Is Conservative Judaism egalitarian? Is it non-egalitarian? Are musical instruments allowed to be used on Shabbat or are they forbidden? What are the tzniut (modesty) rules in our movement? What is considered kosher according to Conservative rabbis?

From the Director
By Richard Moline

Rosh HaShanah is upon us and so are the Aseret Y’mei T’shuvah – that intermediate time after Rosh HaShanah through Yom Kippur known as the Ten Days of Repentance. It’s not just time to buy that one book. It’s time to call that friend and that elderly relative. It’s time to look in the mirror and record your own deeds. And once that’s done, it’s time to dream.

Book Review:
A History of God, by Karen Armstrong
Reviewed by Josh Tobias
Brown University
KOC Assistant Editor

In a world where science has disproved a "Creator God", and visions and raptures are seen as mere neurological quirks, does God really have a place? "God seemed an aberration," Armstrong writes, "something that the human race has outgrown."

Joke

Between God and man…it’s all relative.

"Zionism and Judaism"

Ranking Israel
By Alyssa Appelman, University of Missouri – Columbia
KOC Editor

I always found it fascinating that there was so much diversity within a small group of seemingly similar Conservative Jewish teenagers. We could never agree on what being Jewish ultimately meant for us.

Ki Mitzion Teytzeh Torah
By Shira Zeliger, York University

Physically being in Jerusalem is reason enough to inspire one to study Torah. The spiritual power of the city affects me each day as I walk to and from the Yeshiva and inspires me to study Torah.

Naming Home
By Alana Sobelman

Upon meeting other Americans in Be’er Sheva, a city that has been my home for almost a month now, I am guaranteed to be asked one of two questions and often both: Did I make aliyah? And, where do I go to shul?

How to be a Zionist in Three Easy Steps...
By Rabbi Elyse Winick
KOACH Assistant Director

Each time I staff a Taglit-birthright israel group, it's as if I'm experiencing Israel for the first time. Each group helps me see Israel in a new and different way; each group teaches me something new about Jewish living and Jewish meaning.

KOACH Intern: University of Delaware

Intern Rachel Marcus updates us on Jewish life between Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Bashanah Haba’ah (In the Year Ahead)

If you are interested in writing an article or a book review for any of our issues, please feel free to contact Alyssa Appelman (KOCEditor@koach.org) or Josh Tobias (KOCAsstEditor@koach.org).

Joke
It's all in how you say it...

"The Holocaust: 21st Century Views"

"For the dead and the living"
By Alyssa Appelman
KOACH-on-Campus Editor
University of Missouri

We may find ourselves happy and proud to be Jewish in America, but the one thing we must take from the past is a desire to bear witness for the living who are facing their own injustice around the world...

Finding America in the Czech Republic
By Gail C. Schnitzer
University of Illinois, Urbana/Champaign

Though this camp would have been more bearable than most to endure, there is hardly a foot of ground that does not have some final remnants of the fallen buried beneath it. I can hardly think of a more fitting way to spend my Independence Day...

Israel and the Holocaust
By Rabbi Ed Romm Director
Center on Campus Program in Israel

Not too long ago Iran held an international conference whose purpose was denial of the Holocaust and Israel's right to exist. It is more than coincidental that denying the Holocaust and Israel's right to exist come as a matched set...

Reader Feedback
Thank you to everyone who sent in comments regarding the Tammuz "Homosexuality and Judaism" issue. Here are just some of the responses we have received.

Bashanah Haba?ah (Next Year)
If you are interested in writing an article or a book review for any of our issues, please feel free to contact Alyssa Appelman (KOCEditor@koach.org) or Josh Tobias (KOCAsstEditor@koach.org).

Joke
Sometimes you just can't win...

"Judaism and Homosexuality"

It's Time to Talk
By Alyssa Appelman
KOACH-on-Campus Assistant Editor

But through the day school, camps, youth groups, conferences, and discussions, I find that homosexuality is often ignored.

Unconditionally Sacred Love
By J. D'ror Chankin-Gould, Pitzer College

I am an openly gay Conservative Jewish man. As a boy I wondered whether God could still love me even though my heart loved men.

The Homosexual Intersection: God and Modern Science
By Avi Eisen, Montclair State University

In Rabbi Michael Gold's book Does God Belong in the Bedroom? Rabbi Gold lists three views of how life is viewed, and then relates them to sexual desire...

Judaism and Homosexuality
By Mark Greeenberg, KOACH Fieldworker

Judaism and homosexuality are two terms that for many people create more controversy and headache than the BALCO steroid scandal and Major League Baseball.

Gazpacho
Helping out at home this summer? In an apartment with friends? If you're a counselor at camp, this is even a good choice for mitbakhon or a cooking project!  Enjoy and stay cool...

Joke: The Queen's English
Mr. Fink gets lost in translation.

"Relationships with God"

Who, What, When, Where, How is God?
By Maya Berezovsky, KOACH-on-Campus Editor

What does God look like? Does God have a brain? What material is God made of? Should I feel sacrilegious asking these questions?

The Head, the Heart and the Hand Jew
By Avi Eisen, Montclair State University

The hand Jew lends help to anyone who may need it, may it be something big like Israel, Darfur, etc., or just helping various people who pass by every day.

A Relationship with You is Not God's Top Priority
By Josh Klemons, Engagement Director, San Diego State University

I am sure that if you scoured the halls of the Hebrew Union College (HUC) or the University of Judaism (UJ) you could find at least a few of our future Jewish leaders who, if asked in the strictest of confidence, would admit that they are not 100 percent comfortable in their faith.

Relating to God: A More Metaphysical Relationship
By Becky Adelberg, KOACH Midwest Field Worker

So many religions exist around the world, in part, because each of us has a different way of connecting to God, the Creator, a higher power.

Nanie's Noodle Kugel
This sweet treat will sustain you well if you stay up all night to learn Torah on Shavuot...but you can enjoy it any time!

Truly Spiritual
By Greg Adelberg, University of Kansas

People take their religions too strongly and begin to believe more in their religion and its practices themselves than in the basic idea of God.

Joke: Bush and Moses
President George Bush was in the Middle East attending a summit when he spotted a man with a long beard, a long white robe, and holding a wooden staff in one hand, and two stone tablets in the other hand.

"Cultural vs. Religious Judaism"

Religion vs. Culture: Is One More Jewish?
By Andrew Shepler, University of Missouri-Columbia

A religious Jew gets more out of 10 trips to a Synagogue than a cultural Jew does out of 20. The value is in the service and learning from it, not in being there for the appearance.

From Farm to Food: A Breakdown of Jewish Animal Slaughter
By Avi Eisen, Montclair State University

A still-used method of slaughter is called hoisting and shackling. This method involves shackling the hind legs of the animal and hoisting them up in the air.

What Are We?
By Rich Moline, KOACH DIrector

Lox and bagels are no longer considered to be an exclusively Jewish delicacy. For God's sake - they're even making jalapeno bagels these days!

What if We Were All Cultural Jews?
By Maya Berezovsky, University of Minnesota
KOC Editor

Are we choosing the fun parts of the Torah and skipping out on the daily responsibility of prayer or servitude to God? God commanded we do some of these things. Why do them if you don?t believe in or respect the One who told you to do them?

Recipe: Blintz Cheesecake for Shavuot

Planning your menu for Shavuot? Though we won?t celebrate receiving the Torah until Sivan, we can already be thinking about the sweetness which lies ahead. Dairy foods are customary on Shavuot, since they are traditionally considered to be sweet and thus reflect the sweetness of God?s words?

KOACH Humor

As Moses was leading the Children of Israel through thru parted walls of the Red Sea, some of the children complained of thirst after walking so far.

Theme: "Torah = Truth?"

Leap of Faith
By Alyssa Appelman, KOC Assistant Editor

Okay, so I know that Dawson?s Creek isn?t everyone?s basis for religious analysis, but try to follow me here.

Jiminy Cricket
By Adam Bergman, University of Missouri - Columbia

?With a little help from the Torah and the little guy on your shoulder - what is his name? Oh yeah, Jiminy Cricket!

The Truths
By Jennifer Kerner, SUNY New Paltz

As my mother told me, the true facts of a story are only known to God.

Astronomy
By Emily Green, KOACH West Coast Fieldworker

After exploring the Universe through astronomy I?m pretty sure that it took a lot longer than 24 hours for the sun, the moon, and the stars to be formed; but who said that "God-days" were counted like "human-days?"

Reader Feedback

We're grateful for the feedback we've been receiving on recent issues of KOACH-on-Campus -- we do care what you have to say! Click here for comments on subjects from Jews to Jesus to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Keep those responses coming!

Recipe: Passover Rolls

All that matzah got you down? Try these tasty Passover Rolls. Fill them with some tuna salad and head to class.

KOACH Humor
Bernie and Yossi were down on their luck and decided to do some part time external decoration work to earn extra money?

Theme: "Jewish Humor"

Newly posted (3/13/06):

KOACH Recipe: Nanie?s Cinnamon/Pecan K?mish Brot
By Alyssa Appelman

"Nanie," my maternal grandmother (also known as Lucille Krachmalnick), has been baking for as long as I can remember. She modernized the recipe of her grandmother, Bessie "Bobba" Bickoff, to bake with her own eight grandchildren.

Esther Redux
By Avi Eisen, Montclair State University

Megillat Esther: 75,000 people dead for following the orders of the king. Maybe some had genuine hatred for the Jews, just as Haman did, but most probably did it to defend the provinces they believed in so much.

Posted 2/28/06:

What Are We Laughing At?
By Alyssa Appelman, University of Missouri
KOC Assistant Editor

Printing and reprinting depictions of Muhammad in public newspapers is clearly different (and potentially more offensive) than making a comment among friends. ?Not to say that laughing at another group?s quirks are admirable in private, but just more socially acceptable.

It?s a Wonderful Country
By Devora Greenberg
Shliha to the Conservative Movement

"Humor is more aggressive in Israel; it?s more black, more intense."

KOACH Humor: God's Son-in-Law

 "Well," says Mr. Schwartz, "he's a lovely boy, I only just met him and he already thinks I'm God."

KOACH Q-and-A
An Interview with Hanna Hindin, St. Kate's

As one of a handful, I can help define what "Jewish" is to my peers. It?s not just "that group of kids with huge curly hair and blah blah blah" but something I choose to portray.

The Tu B'Shvat Seder
By Shira Zeliger, York University

The "Haggadah" which was used for this seder, was created by Shira Zeliger, KOACH Intern at York University and Yonah Krakowsky, Yavneh Olami co-director at York and featured contemporary poems, Talmudic sources, blessings for the seven species of the Land of Israel and some jokes as well.

Get Monthly Updates - New Articles Posted Monthly

Editorial calendar / Submit an article

Meet the Staff - Bios & Photos

Index to KOACH Humor - Jewish Jokes
 

Theme: "Modern Jewish Conflicts"

Newly posted (2/23):

Is America Co-opting our Cool?
Josh Klemons
San Diego State Hillel

Matisyahu recently played New Year?s Eve in San Diego and tickets sold out in 35 minutes. I guarantee you that for every Jewish person that was there, there were three non-Jews in attendance.

KOACH RECIPE: Taco Salad

You won?t need a kitchen for this great Shabbat salad idea (or any other time of the week) from KOACH Field Worker Emily Green.

Posted (1/30):

Stand Up for Sit Downs, the Answer to the Arab-Israeli Conflict
Zach Seeskin, Brandeis University

When we think of the success of the civil rights movement, we do not think of Brown v. Board of Education or the Civil Rights Act of 1964. We think of boycotts, sit-ins, freedom rides, and the March on Washington. These grassroots actions won the hearts and minds of the people...

Be Open-Minded Without Dropping Your Ideals
Risa Weinstein
KOACH Rabbinic Intern

It was to my surprise, delight, and comfort, ? when two of the service leaders from the Orthodox seminary approached me and told me they supported my decision to pray alone.

KOACH Q & A
An Interview with Jeremy Goldmeier, University of Missouri

How do you go about explaining traditions to classmates? Inaccurately, for the most part.

Jew for Jesus, A Winning Oxymoron
Maya Berezovsky, KOC Editor
University of Minnesota

Most Jewish people I know hate being approached on the street with, "Have you accepted Jesus?" or any derivation of that. It is like that person is stomping on what we believe in, spitting like a fire extinguisher at the very fire that warms our soul.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Humor: Business at the beach?

Get Monthly Updates - New Articles Posted Monthly

Editorial calendar / Submit an article

Meet the Staff - Bios & Photos

Index to KOACH Humor - Jewish Jokes
 

Theme: "Judaism in Different Contexts"

Jewish Population: Me
When one begins to describe Jewish life in South Dakota in the 20th and 21st centuries, one can begin with its foundation?the religious school. When I was a student, approximately 35 students met in a one-room schoolhouse in the basement of the synagogue... (Stephanie King, recent grad, U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado)

Eating, Sleeping, and Breathing Judaism
There is just no escaping it wherever I turn. I live in a totally Jewish world and love every moment of it... (Rabbi Ed Romm, Director of the Center on Campus Program in Israel)

Helloooo? Got Jews?
If someone had told me, at any point in my life, that one day I would be desperately Googling, ?Synagogues in Alfalfa, Oklahoma,? I would never have believed them... (Maya Berezovsky, U. of Minnesota, KOACH-on-Campus editor)

Worldwide Ethical Wrestling: Fate vs. Free Will
?I shall be which I shall be.? This is a profound statement of individuality, citing our right to choose our own fate...(Dvar Torah by Avi Eisen, Montclair State U.)

Getting to Know You: Q&A with KOACH E-zine Editors
New this month: KOACH E-Zine iInterview feature. What are Jewish college students thinking? Interview with David Schwartz, KOACH Intern...

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

KOACH Recipe: Chicken Soup for the Sick College Student's Soul
Three weeks of my first month of college were characterized by sneezing, a runny nose, coughing and a sore throat. (Recipe by Lia Lehrer, Northwestern University)

Humor: If Computers Were Jewish
1. Instead of getting a "General Protection Fault" error, your PC would get "farklempt"

Theme: "Afterlife:
Does it Matter in This Life?"

L'dor Vador: I'm Gonna Live Forever
I was reading about banned books when one particular article caught my attention. It was an interview with Lois Lowry, the author of my favorite childhood book, "The Giver," which was apparently being banned from a local school district, due to outcry by parents...(Alyssa Appelman, U. of Missouri, Columbia KOACH E-Zine Assistant Editor)

Do My Present Actions Matter Later?
How would our lives would be different if our consciousness and actions were guided by thoughts of an afterlife? Would we put extra effort into our interactions with others, our community, our work, our relationship with God and more? (Becky Adelberg, KOACH Field Worker)

Oh, Death!
I?m reading a novel by Don DeLillo called White Noise. It is, according to my teacher, the archetypical post-modern novel. Throughout the novel there is an undercurrent of fear of Death... (Andrew Ratner, George Washington University)

Our Bodies on Loan
Our mortality defines us as a species. "Ashes to ashes" offers a clear message signifying the ever-working dichotomy that ensures balance and natural order....We should consider the afterlife even at our age... (Stephen Walter, Cornell College)

Live Life, But Not Through a Computer Screen
Pharaoh and Yaakov are both intelligent enough to distinguish being alive and living a life. Being alive means breathing air and having brain activity. Living is interacting with the world around you... (Dvar Torah by Avi Eisen, Montclair State University)

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

KOACH Recipe: Nana's Famous Latkes
My Nana, my maternal grandmother, was a traditionalist when she cooked. A good Eastern European immigrant, her borscht (beet soup) was tangy, her stuffed cabbage intricately layered and moist... (Risa Weinstein, KOACH Rabbinic Intern)

Humor: Movies We Think We May Have Seen
YOU'VE GOT MALE: A Chabad rebbetzin is overcome with joy when the doctor tells her that, after 12 daughters, she finally has a son....

More humor: 'Twas the Night Before Hanukkah
Yeah, it's a little early for the winter holidays, but this parody will help get you in the mood...

Theme:
"Jewish-Christian Relations"

Embracing Diversity through Self-Awareness
We can refrain from using derogatory terms. We can vote for affirmative action policies... (Alyssa Appelman, U. of Missouri, Columbia KOACH E-Zine Assistant Editor)

Biblical Interfaith Relations
The Bible tells us that the people ultimately known as the Israelites escaped Egypt and wandered for 40 years in the desert to reach the land God showed Abraham long ago... (Helene Zucker, State U. of NY at New Paltz)

Love and Learn from Thy Neighbor
When the KOACH E-Zine editor, e-mailed me to tell me that I had the honor of writing this month?s staff piece, I was excited. I thought that a topic like "Jewish-Christian Relations" would lead me to a cornucopia of interesting topics... (Mark Greenberg, KOACH Field Worker Washington, DC)

Open to the Possibilities
Whenever I tell people that I have lived in Texas for the last 20 years, they all assume that I am a conservative, horseback-riding, cowboy-loving and bible-reading redneck. When I tell them I?m Jewish, they often respond, "Oh, are you the only one in Texas?" The answer is always a resounding, "No!"... (Rachel Kaufman)

The Beginning of the Torah, the Beginning of Life (Dvar Torah)
I would like to look at one of my favorite commentators on Parashat Bereishit: Stephen Schwartz, composer and lyricist of the musical Children of Eden... (Dvar Torah by Avi Eisen, Montclair State University)

OTHER FEATURES

Cook with KOACH: : Banana Bread
Becky Adelberg gives us her grandmother's special recipe...

Humor: 'Twas the Night Before Hanukkah
Yeah, it's a little early for the winter holidays, but this parody will help get you in the mood...

Theme:
"High Holidays=High Emotions?"

How to Experience an Emotional Whirlpool
This year, I will participate in my fourth year of High Holiday services. For 18 years before that... (By KOC Editor Maya Berezovsky, U. of Minnesota)

Self-Reflection: Looking in the Mirror More than Once a Year
The High Holidays force us to reflect. But how many of us actually delve into self-reflection more than once a year? (By Hinda Tz. Eisen, Boston U.)

Seeing the Bigger Picture
During the month of Tishrei, we experience many different emotions: happiness from a new year, pleasure from things we have accomplished, sadness from things that have happened, anguish from things we have done to others and hope for the future. (By Avi Eisen, Montclair State)

Balancing Ritual and Righteousness
The haftarot that we read from the Shabbat following the 17th of Tammuz through Yom Kippur are fascinating. We begin with the Telata de-Puranta... (By David Goldberg, York U.)

Remembrance of Things Past
It?s funny how different ears can hear the same sounds in different ways. The midrash says just that about the sound of the thunder on Mount Sinai... (By Rabbi Elyse Winick, KOACH Assistant Director)

"Our Father, Hear Our Prayer"
When distant rains awash my soul / And gunshots ring out 'cross the knoll... (Poetry by Hillary Blank, American U.)

OTHER FEATURES

Campus Updates
From Brandeis, UCLA, York University (By Zach Seeskin, Jenn Lorch and Shira Zeliger)

Cook with KOACH Savory Beef Brisket
A perfect meal for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a midnight snack. (By Maya Berezovsky)

KOACH HUMOR: A Rosh HaShanah Blessing
All of our readers are, no doubt, familiar with the Rosh HaShanah custom of eating an apple dipped in honey...

Theme:
"Interdating and Intermarriage"

Maya Berezovsky: Joining the Tribe

Joe Roberts: Wrongminded Rhetoric

Jill Ingber: Capulets and Montagues

Hillary Blank: Dating on the 'Net

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Rich Moline: Choosing Hope - The Disengagement and the Hurricane

Rabbi Elyse Winick: Cooking with KOACH: Blintzes (Recipe)

Alyssa Appelman: KOACH's New Assistant Editor

Humor: The Talking Dog

Editorial calendar / Submit an article

Meet the Staff - Bios & Photos
 

Theme: "The Ideal Rabbi"

A Rabbi Walks Into a Bar...
Joe Roberts asks us to question how we think about rabbis and the gifts they have to share.

But She Doesn't Have a Beard!
What image comes to mind when you think "rabbi"? Are we giving all the possible candidates an equal chance? Maya Berezovsky questions her own assumptions -- and invites you to question yours.

The Ideal Rabbi Today
Can 10 simple statements summarize the qualities of the ideal rabbi?

A Beacon in the Storm
Jenny Walder draws strength from many sources in these difficult days.

It Must Have Been a Typo
Inconsistencies in the Torah have many explanations. Sometimes their poetry is all we need. Compare and contrast with Jacqueline Lehrer.

Humor Corner
Clarify your confusion with a pope, a rabbi and a snack.

Cool Quotes Who Said It?
"Each day comes bearing its own gifts. Untie the ribbons."

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "Jewish Stereotypes"

Through the Looking Glass:  How Stereotypes Change When You Look the Other Way
If you think you don?t form stereotypes, says KOC Editor Maya Berezovsky (U. of Minnesota), travel to a foreign country where you are the minority. You discover how varied people truly are and how your mind copes with shocks to your system.

Nose Job: The Fear of Being "Other"
With the Shoah fading deeper and deeper into the past, this society must still remember to break free of old images, says Helene Zucker (SUNY, New Paltz).

Closing the Gap
c Field Worker Sherri Vishner questions whether Orthodox Jews have an exclusive claim on Torah observance.

How Not to Self Destruct
Fasting on the 17th of Tammuz reminds us of the dangers of baseless hatred between Jews, says Jacqueline Lehrer (U. of Ontario).

KOACH Humor: Matchmaking
Why didn't you tell me the girl is Lord Rothschild's daughter?

Cool Quotes
Who said it? Minds are like parachutes - they only function when open.

Theme: "Judaism and Feminism"

Judaism is Sexist Against Both Sexes
KOC Editor Brielle Goodman argues that Judaism is extremely politically incorrect.

Jewish Rights are More Advanced Than American Rights
KOACH Field Worker Leemor Dotan's personal heroes happen to be Jewish women.

God Would Not Disparage Between the Sexes--He?s Not Like That!
Josh Klemons, of San Diego State University, explores feminism in the context of monotheism.

D?var Torah: Get a piece of Torah
Jacqueline Lehrer believes women are the historical backbone of the Jewish Patriarchy.

Campus Update
For Shira Zeliger, it's been an incredible year at York University in Toronto.

KOACH?s Humor Section.
The optimist sees the bagel, the pessimist sees the hole...and more tidbits.

Cool Quotes from Ibn Gabirol, Winston Churchill, Oprah Winfrey and Walt Disney
Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know whether you did it or not.

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "One People, Many Opinions"

HaTikvah vs. The Star Spangled Banner
Air Force Academy Student Stephanie King discusses patriotism towards the US vs. Israel.

The Pursuit of Holiness is Not the Exclusive Domain of Any One Jew or Any One Theology
Poster Child (and KOACH Director) Rich Moline supports the phrase Am Ehad Im Lev Ehad, even if we disagree at times.

How?s Your Foot Feeling?
Joe Roberts of UMD debates the pros and cons of the methods of Jewish Education.

Love Your Neighbor As Yourself!
KOC Editor Brielle Goodman enumerates her reasons for her love of Judaism

Two Jews, Three Opinions is as Old as The Jews
Jacqueline Lehrer shines some light on when debating is holy and when it is not.

Campus Updates!!

• Rachel Zuckman makes leaps and bounds of progress at Michigan State.
• Diana Weiner glows with pride for her KOACH Community on Princeton?s Campus.

Jewish Joke
When are we good enough? Guilt Trips and God?

Who Said It?
"I always give much away, and so gather happiness instead of pleasure."

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "The Art of Making Meaning: My Favorite Jewish Ritual"

Between Light and Darkness
KOC Editor Brielle Goodman has stars in her eyes.

Passing the Flame
Zach Horwitz of Columbia College wants to kindle a flame.

Walking the Walk
A trip around the block has metaphysical significance in Jacqueline Lehrer?s monthly d?var Torah.

Singing Your Heart Out
The song?s the thing when it comes to prayer for Rabbi Elyse Winick, KOACH Assistant Director.

Cool Quotes
Who Said It? "I'm an idealist. I don't know where I'm going but I'm on the way." Find out in this month?s Cool Quotes.

This Month?s Joke
Looking for a PR firm to sell Passover?

Next Issue...and Beyond
Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article

Article Index
We've been net-publishing our monthly e-zine for several years. All past articles are archived online.

Theme: "You Shall Live Through Them--An Informed Journey with Jewish Medical Ethics"

Controversy 101: Abortion and Judaism
KOC Assistant Editor Maya Berezovsky

Jewish Genetics 101
Lauren Gross, of the Victor Center for Jewish Genetic Diseases, gives us a crash course in Jewish Diseases.

Jewish Genetics Screening 102
Knowledge is power ? and the information is easy to acquire.

Bringing God to Earth
Jacqueline Lehrer composes an inspiring D?var Torah about Purim, Intoxication and Humanity.

And God Commanded, "Give Blood"
KOACH Field Worker Hannah Estrin gives the halakhic perspective on blood donation.

Campus Connection
KOACH Intern Alex Helfand tells of the excitement at Columbia University and Barnard College.

Comedy Corner
Goldberg Variations

Who Said It?
It's easier to go down a hill than up, but the view is much better at the top.

Next Issue...and Beyond
Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article

Article Index
We've been net-publishing our monthly e-zine for several years. All past articles are archived online.

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "Pondering Our Wanderings: Questions Inspired by the Torah"

Finding Your Way Home
KOC Editor Brielle Goodman recounts her rediscovery of her love of Judaism.

Is The Torah True?
Rabbi Romm answers this and other questions concerning the Torah.

Speaking of Torah?
Noam Sturmwind explores what Judaism says about what we say.

D?var Torah
The Question is More Important than the Answer, says Jacqueline Lehrer.

Cool Quotes: Who Said It?
"I have found that if you love life, life will love you back."

Campus Update
KOACH is putting Delaware on the Jewish Map.

A Moment, A Lifetime
A birthright israel participant reflects on to her first trip to Israel.

Comedy Corner: Your fix of Jewish Jokes
"Sing, sing a song." Theme songs for your favorite Biblical heroes...
 

Theme: "Jewish Superheroes"

Great Love for Friends, Judaism & God
Assistant Editor Maya Berezovsky says her heroes are those who pray rain or shine.

Minnesota?s Mother Theresa
Caryn London, University of Miami, tells us why her hero is Minnesota?s Mother Theresa.

Theme: "Hollywood vs. Holywood"

Judaism Is Not A Fad
KOC Assistant Editor Maya Berezovsky looks at many examples of how Jews are portrayed in the media. There?s no need to mock or denigrate Jews, we should be represented respectfully.

We?re Not All Lox and Bagel Jews
KOACH Fieldworker Leemor Dotan shows that Jews are working to change their public image.

Any Press Is Good. Good Press Is Better
Jill Ingber at U of Wisconsin-Madison says we should be thankful for Jewish celebrities, because how many other things could we have in common with a celebrity?


Identity Crisis. Who Am I??
Even Moses had issues with his Jewish Identity. Read on, and see how you?re not alone.

Hanukkah Hits the Radio
Matana Abramson at Rutgers is glad Adam Sandler put Hanukkah on the map of holiday radio tunes.

Campus Update!
Nathan Fein at Boston U tells us of his activities.

Comedy Corner: Your fix of Jewish Jokes
The rabbi's wife rates his sermons.

Extra Extra, Quote All About It
Who Said It?  "Tomorrow hopes that we have learned something from yesterday"
 

Theme: "Judaism and Sexuality"

Sexuality Redux
According to KOACH-on-Campus Editor Brielle Goodman, there's something to be said for holding back.

"Kiss-Lev," the Month About Love
For right now, says KOACH Assistant Director Rabbi Elyse Winick, a kiss can be enough.

A Word of Torah
Jacqueline Lehrer, a student at the University of Toronto, examines the story of Joseph and Jewish customs of modesty.

Getting to Know You
Joe Roberts, of the University of Maryland, asks: How many times do you have to have sex with a person to know them? How well do you have to know someone in order to have sex with them?

Jews and Sex: Things to Consider
Michele Adler, of the University of Albany, asserts that sex is viewed very positively in Judaism.


Cool Quotes for Kislev
Making Life Meaningful. Name the author: "You win some, you lose some, and some get rained out, but you gotta suit up for them all."

Seasonal Humor
Differences between Hanukkah and Christmas finally explained!
 

Theme: "The Intersections of American and Israeli Politics"

Clutching Onto Stillness
Daniel Estrin, spending his junior year at Ben Gurion University, is Clutching onto Stillness.....

A Word of Torah
Jacqueline Lehrer of The University of Ontario explores the lessons of Parashat Noah.

Listening with an Educated Ear
KOACH Assistant Editor Maya Berezovsky encourages us to get all the facts in Listening with an Educating Ear.

Blue and White Meets Red, White and Blue
Devora Greenberg, shliha to the Conservative Movement, offers an Israeli eye to the American political scene.

Cool Quotes for Heshvan
You Can Change the World

This Month's Joke
Even God's vote gets counted in this month's KOACH humor column.

Theme: "How Technology Affects Jewish Practices"

The True Spirit of Shabbat...

KOC's Brielle Goodman ponders the wonders of technology and thinks that maybe the rabbis were right after all.

The Power to Choose

Rich Moline, KOACH Director, learns from God's example that we can control our destinies in The Power to Choose.

Dancing to a Spiritual Beat

A mixed metaphor?  Discover what's Jewish about hip-hop in Dancing to a Spiritual Beat with Harvard's Arie Hasit.

Cool Quotes

Cool Quotes: seasonal inspiration.

This Month's Joke

Humor: A tasty tidbit from your grandmother's kitchen...

Welcome, Maya...

KOACH welcomes a new Ezine Assistant Editor: Maya Berezovsky, of the University of Minnesota.

Next Issue...and Beyond

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "Jerusalem"

Visions of Jerusalem

KOACH Mid-Atlantic Field Worker Sherri Vishner shares her visions of Jerusalem.

Vision, or Lack Thereof

KOC Editor Brielle Goodman recalls her first trip to Jerusalem.

Reflections at the Wall

Chaya Oliver's heart is in the East even though she's in the West. Read about her visit to the Old City.

Jewish Humor: Who was the greatest comedian in the Bible?

And...Where is the first tennis match mentioned in the Bible?

Cool Quotes

Rejoice in Jerusalem and delight in her people.

Read Opinions about Food

Is eating connected to Jewish identity? Read student opinions.

Next Issue...and Beyond

Check out our editorial calendar, and volunteer to submit an article
 

Theme: "Dating in a Jewish World"

Why Should I Give that Nice Jewish Boy a Chance?

Leemor Dotan, KOACH Midwest Field Worker, offers insights on our Jewish future.

Love as a Public Commodity

Sarah Bier, KOC Assistant Editor, thinks dating today is still too similar to ?Fiddler on the Roof.?

To Touch or Not to Touch, That is the Question

Jacqueline Lehrer at the University of Ontario discusses the concept of shomer negiyah.

Jewish Humor: Just How Old Is The Telephone?

We always knew Israelis liked to talk, but ? WOW!

Cool Quotes

Even A Bad Relationship Isn?t The End of the World After all, it?s Already Tomorrow in Australia!

Read Opinions about Interdating

Do you think it's necessary to date or marry only Jews? Read student opinions.

Talk to Us: Jewish Food

Is eating connected to Jewish identity? What's your favorite Jewish food? Care to submit a recipe?

Theme: "Concepts of God"

The Tree of Life and Hope

When conflict and strife hit his campus, D?ror Chankin-Gould of Claremont College took comfort in the words of a child?

The Gift that Keeps on Giving

"It is a tree of life to those who hold fast to it?." Join Shira Zeliger of York University on her Shavuot journey.

A Shared Philosophy

Brielle Goodman, KOACH on Campus editor, looks to Ralph Waldo Emerson in forming a concept of God.

Out of the Corner of Your Eye

Go off the beaten track with KOACH Assistant Director Rabbi Elyse Winick in a quest for God.

Cool Quotes about God.

...from Carlebach, Heschel, Twerski and others.

Humor on the Golf Course

His Jewish identity is revealed when the waters part...on the golf course!

Talk to Us: Interdating

Do you think it's necessary to date or marry only Jews?

Opinions about God

What is God? What is God's gender?

Theme: Arab-Israeli Conflict/Road Map to Peace

My Take on the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict

The coming of the intifada was the end of paradise for Rabbi Ed Romm, director of the Center on Campus program at The Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism in Israel.

Opinion: Looking in the Mirror

We barely discuss how to end the violence, says KOACH-ON-CAMPUS assistant editor Sarah Bier (University of Illinois). Does criticism of Israel equate with an argument against Israel's existence?

Sand in Their Eyes

Jacob Kotlicky, of Yeshiva University, asks whether both sides are fanning the flames of hatred.

Israeli's Joy: Basketball

Israeli basketball teams are making great strides and are taking Europe by storm. And Chanan Golub, George Washington University, couldn?t be happier or prouder.

Cool Quotes

"Challenge is a dragon with a gift in its mouth... Tame the dragon and the gift is yours." Who said it?

Humor: 27 Rules for Jewish Living

Rule #1: Never take a front-row seat at a bris. Study 26 more rules:

Talk to Us: Do we have our own will, or are we puppets bending to God's will?

Read Opinions on the security fence and a Palestinian state...

Theme: Freedom

From slavery to freedom.

KOACH Director Rich Moline explores the precarious balance among freedom and chaos.

Commentary: "The Passion" United Synagogue offers commentary and analysis on Mel Gibson's film.

Show Me The Freedom!

KOC Editor Brielle Goodman celebrates the freedom for which our ancestors died.

Ce-e-e-elebrate good times (come on!).

Sarah Kader of the University of Arizona recounts the joys and delights of this year?s KOACH Kallah.

Finding a safe haven halfway around the world:

Jessica Cavanagh of the University of Illinois travels from South Africa to Canada to freedom.

Anya Groznaya of the University of Illinois...

gets a new lease on life with the fall of the Iron Curtain.

Cool Quotes...

"What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul"...and more...

Humor...

The end of the line. Make time to laugh with KOACH.

Your opinions, please...

This month's 5 Questions 5 Minutes survey asks about the Road Map to Peace. Do you think the fence between Israel and Palestine has made a difference in safety?

Theme: Alternative Sedarim

KOC Editor Brielle Goodman says the Passover Seder should move with the times...

KOACH Faculty Coordinator Harry Pell explains the logic behind alternative Sedarim...

Wendy Moses of Emory University explains what an enlightening experience an alternative Seder can be...

In this month's Dvar Torah, find out from Tzeira Creditor (Virginia Commonwealth University) how many personalities can speak in a single voice....

"A true friend is one soul in two bodies." Who said it? Find out here.

Artscroll...Tikkun magazine...Rashi...Ariel Sharon. How would they approach the task of shoveling snow?